Draft or buffing rigging.



Patented Oct. I5, 1904!.

R. D. GALLAGHER, In. DRAFT 0B BUFFING RIGGING. (Application filed July1, 1901.)

(No Model.)

Egg/Hz I w/eywaea- UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

RICHARD D. GALLAGHER, JR., OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO STAND- ARDCOUPLER COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEWV JERSEY.

DRAFT OR BUFFING RIGGING.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 684,505, dated October15, 1901.

Original application filed April 8, 1901, Serial No. 54,900. Divided andthis application filed July 1, 1901.

Serial No. 66,726.

(No model) To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, RICHARD D. GALLA- GHER, J r., a citizen of theUnited States, residing at New York, in the county of New York and Stateof New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Draftor Bufiing Rigging; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full,clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, and to thefigures of reference marked thereon.

This invention relates to improvements in rigging designed to yield andtake up strains of parts moved by heavy pressure, and while theinvention is well adapted for use in connection with heavy mechanism ormechanism operating under heavy pressure, such as ordnance, wherein therecoil must be checked, it is particularly designed to answer therequirements of the draft-rigging for cars, and more especially riggingof heavy rollingstock-as, for instance, the modern steel cars of largecapacity. In its application to draft-rigging for cars the invention isdesigned to be capable of ready application to cars of practically anytype and having either steel or wood draft timbers or framing.

To this end one of the objects of the invention is to provide astructure capable of being readily substituted for draft-rigging onrolling-stock now in use or applied to rollingstock in course ofconstruction without cutting to any material extent the draft-timberswhen of Wood or modifying the framing when of metal.

A further object of the invention is to provide a structure in which thesprings may be arranged in the line of pressure and at the same timetheir resistance so augmented and modified that springs of ordinarystandard size and power may, where desired, be utilized for thedraft-rigging of rolling-stock of practically unlimited weight andwithout occasioning shock or oscillation of the cars in starting,stopping, or varying speed and regardless of the length of the train.

The present application is a division of my prior application, SerialNo. 54,900, filed April 8, 1901; and the presentinventi'on consists incertain novel details of construction and combinations and arrangementsof parts, all as will be now described, and pointed out particularly inthe appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a horizontal section of adraft and buffingrigging embodying the present improvements. Figs. 2 and3 are similar views showing slightlymodified arrangements of the parts,

Like numerals in the several figures designate the same parts.

In the application of the invention to a draftrigging of railway-carsthe working parts of the mechanism are preferably sustained betweencheek-plates, which may be of suitable design to adapt them forattachment to the sills or draft-timbers of the carframe, and in thepreferred type these cheekplates are made as nearly as possible toconform to the requirements of car-frames of any construction now in useor so as to be capable of application thereto without modification, butsimply by varying the mode of attachment.

In said drawings the numeral 1 indicates cheek-plates or equivalentstructures adapted to form part of or be attached to the under framingof the car, all as in my said prior application. Said cheek-plates areprovided with inclined guiding-surfaces, which may be integraltherewith, as indicated at 2, Fig. 3, but are preferably formed as partsof a separate integral frame 3, as in Figs. 1 and 2, which frame is heldin suitable seats in the proximate faces of the cheek-plates.

The numeral tindicates the draw-bar, and 5 a strap attached thereto,both of ordinary or preferred construction. The working parts of therigging all lie between the cheekplates and within the strap 5, theyielding member being preferably formed by a coiled spring orsprings,which may be of the standard types now commonly used indraft-rigging. Tandem springs are preferably employed, as in Fig. 1, inorder to secure a somewhat wider range of movement, such springs beingindicated by the numeral 6.

The inclines or frames 2 and 3 are located at one end only of therigging in the present instan ce, and a follower 7, having oppositeinclines 8,works between them, suitable wed geblocks 9 being interposedbetween the inclines of the follower and cheek plates, respectively. Thefollower and wed ge-blooks are acted upon, but in opposite directions,by the draw-bar and spring, whereby in transmitting motion from one ofsaid last-mentioned members to the other the wedge-blocks are caused totravel in diagonal planes, and the resistance due to the friction andwedging of the parts is added to the direct resistance of the springs.Further,a differential movement is seen red, which adds to theefficiency of the apparatus in resisting and taking up strains incidentto the use of the apparatus.

In the preferred arrangement shown in Fig. 1 the chcek-platesl areprovided with stops 10 and 11 for retaining ordinary follower-plates 1213, between which the rear one of the springs 6 is located, while theforward spring 6 is located between the followerplate 13 and thefollower 7, the rear end of the latter spring, however, preferablyresting against a face-plate 11, having a hub 15 extending rearwardlythrough the followerplate 13 and contacting with a corresponding hub 16on the rear follower-plate 12 or on a face-plate 17, corresponding tothe plate 1 1 and against which the tail-strap is adapted to bear. Withthis construction draft or forward strains will compress both springsdirectly and independently; but on the reverse movement of the draw-baror when buffing strains are applied the springs are compressedindirectly through the wedge-blocks and follower, thereby adding to theresistance of the springs, the resistance of the friction, and wedgingaction of these parts. The follower with the arrangement shown travelsfaster than the draw-bar, and the tandem arrangement of springs permitsof a longer range of movement and at the same time permits of the use ofstandard springs.

The arrangement shown in Fig. 3 corresponds closely to that of Fig. 1,save that but a single spring 18 and a single follower-plate 19 areemployed, the spring being confined between the follower-plate 19 andfollower 7.

In Fig. 2 two follower-plates 20 and 21 are employed, with the spring 22between them, and the wedging and frictional devices are located outsideof and cooperate with'one of the follower-plates. In this figure thedirection of the inclination of the guiding-inclines 3 is the reverse ofthat in Figs. 1 and 3, and a wedging-follower 24 is introduced betweenthe wedge-blocks 9 and the draw-bar. The wedge-blocks 9 work against theface of the follower.

By varying the angle of inclination the wedging action and frictionalresistance may be correspondingly varied, adapting the apparatus for usein resisting strains of practically unlimited power, and in everyinstance the frictional resistance is such as to prevent injuriousrecoil of the springs, thereby insuring a steady movement in bothdirections under all conditions of use.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In an apparatus such as described, the combination with a spring andfollowers between which the spring is confined, of apressure-transmitting member arranged in alinement with said spring,direct connections between the pressure-transmitting member and afollower at one end of the spring wedgeblocks interposed between thepressuretransmitting member and the follower at the opposite end of thespring and fixed inclined guides with which said wedge-blocks cooperate;substantially as described.

2. In an apparatus such as described the combination with a spring andfollowers between which the spring is confined, of apressure-transmitting member cooperating with the follower at one end ofthe spring to directly compress the same, wedge-blocks, fixed andmovable inclines with which the same cooperate interposed between thepressuretransmitting memberand follower at the opposite end of thespring and stops for preventing outward movement of the followers,whereby strains in one direction are resisted directly by the spring andstrains in the opposite direction are resisted by the spring andfrictional and wedging resistance of the wedge blocks; substantially asdescribed.

3. In a draft-rigging the combination with the followers, stops againstwhich they abut to hold them against outward movement, a springinterposed between said wedge-blocks, a draw-bar and a strap secured tothe drawbar and passing around the followers and spring, of wedge-blocksinterposed between the front follower and draw-bar, and fixed andmovable inclines with which the wedgeblocks cooperate,the movement ofthe wedgeblocks along the inclines being resisted by the springinterposed between the followers; substantially as described.

4. In a draft-rigging, the combination with springs arranged in tandemfollower-plates at opposite ends of one spring, stops to prevent themovement of said follower-plates away from each other, a follower at theouter end of the other spring and stops to prevent its outward movement,of a pressure-transmit ting member cooperating to directly move the rearfollower-plate, wedge-blocks and fixed and movable inclines cooperatingtherewith interposed between the follower at the front end and thepressure-transmitting member, whereby the springs are independent whenresisting strains in one direction and conjoint in resisting strains inthe opposite direction; substantially as described. 7

5. In a draft-rigging the combination with springs arranged in tandemand followers at the front, back and between said springs, of

stops for holding the front and back followers against outward movement,while permitting them to move inward, stops for holding the intermediatefollower against movement in one direction, a pressure-transmittingmember cooperating with the front and back followers, and a connectionfor transmitting the pressure from said member past one of said springsto the inner end of the other spring whereby the springs are independentwhen strains in one direction are resisted and conjoint when strains inthe opposite direction are resisted; substantially as described.

6. In a draft-rigging the combination with springs arranged in tandem,followers at the front, back and between said springs, stops forpreventing the outward movement of the front and back followers andstops for preventing the movement of the intermediate follower in aforward direction, of aface-plate in rear of the rear follower and infront of the intermediate follower, hubs on said faceplates passingthrough the followers and contacting with each other and apressure-transmitting member inclosing the followers and springs forcompressing said springs under either draft or buffing strains, the saidsprings being acted upon independently in one direction and conjointlyin the opposite direc tion; substantially as described.

7. In a draft-rigging the combination with springs arranged in tandem,followers at the front, back and between said springs, stops forpreventing the outward movement of the front and back followers, stopsfor preventing the forward movement of the intermediate follower, aface-plate in rear of the rear follower and in front of the intermediatefollower and hubs on said face-plates passing through the followers andcontacting with each other, of a pressure-transmitting member inclosingthe followers and springs,wedgeblocks interposed between the frontfollower and pressure-transmitting member and fixed and movable inclinescooperating with said wedge-blocks, whereby under strains in onedirection the springs are acted upon directly and independently andunder strains in the opposite direction the pressure is transmitted tothe springs through the wedge blocks and said springs act conjointly inresisting such strains; substantially as described.

, RICHARD D. GALLAGHER, JR.

Witnesses:

A. W. GAYLoR, L. F. MOGARITY.

